The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1887-09-16

He never minded my presence q bit Che
never did care for any one but himself,
but he turned to Fanny like mailman:
"Oh, you're here at last, are your Say
have you sold any of your railroad stockf''
eyes, father, I've sold it all"
"Great heavensi Do you mean to tell
me that? What, in the name of all the
fiends, made you do such a thing as that
without consulting mei How dared you
do itg'
You know what Fanny Is. She's chip
of the old block, tell you She stood
there as calm, pulling OF her gloves, and
never even turned pale.
'DaredS' she said 81 dared because
it was my own and because am % years
old. That's why dared"
Obi you ought to have heard old Coupon
swear. 1t was just dreadful. He brought
down his fist on the table and thought
he would have split it in two.
"You simpering idiot, you! That's what
a fool woman knows about businessi To
go and sell that stock without saying q
- word to mel Lordl Who do you
thinks got it now?''
81 suppose Skinner, the broker. sold
it to him. He said it wasn't every one
could get stock for thirty-five and sell it
for sixty"
"SixtyI Sixty devilsp'
''No, sixty dollars"
/ thought old Coupon would have
struck her. Oh, wasn't he mad. I don't
believe either of them remembered / was
in the room. "Do you know" he shouted,
'sthat that whelp Hartford has got that
stock and that he has his plans laid to
freeze me out? Do you know that you
have ruined one of the most magnificent
railroad deals of the century? Do you
know that if you held on to that stock
three months longer it would have been
worth no? Do you know that it is ninety
now? Do you see what a fool you are and
that you have ruined me?''
elbow could Hartford have got it when
you said yourself that he was beggar2"
"Beggar be -"(oh, 1 can't tell you
the perfectly awful language he used).
'fWhy a man who knew where to put his
hand on that stock could have raised the
money for it in ten minutes in Detroit, If
he were ten times beggar."
"Don't You think you could make
terms with Hartford? You used to be
good friends"
Old Coupon sat down and groaned. he
dug his hands in his hair and rested his
his elbows on the table.
"I'm real sorry" said Fanny; 'I'll buy
back the stock if you like"
Then old Coupon jumped up and began
pacing up and down and swearing again.
'sHear the simpletonr' he yelled.
''She'n buy it backl Good gracious!
haven't you sense enough to know that
you could as easily buy your way into
heaven? Buy back the stock! suppose
you think it's like piece of silk that
they will exchange at the store"
"Well," said Fanny with sigh, 81 am
afraid you will have to make some kind
Of terms with Mr.. Hartford. Pm sorry
now we didn't use him better"
Old Coupon looked at her for moment.
'sFanny," he said, 'do you think he
would come over here if you cabled to
him?''
"Oh, 1 couldn't do thing like that.
Not for the world"
"But by - you must do it," he cried,
bringing his fist down on the table again;
'tyou have got me into this muddle and it
is your duty to do anything you can to
get me out"
'eBut, father, if he comes over here-he
that is-if he should'--- ....--
ooh, hang It all, don't founder about
like that. 1 know what you mean. If
he wants to marry you and won't give up
the stock unless, then you'll have to
marry him, do you hear? I won't stand
any nonsense. Besides 1 always did dis
like that rascal"
Fanny sighed and said that she would
do so if there was no other way out OF it.
And sure enough when he came over there
was no other way out of it. He gave
back the stock to Fanny when they were
married. Old Coupon is going to make
him vice president of the road.
"And do you think that Fanny gave
him the''-
"Of course she gave it to him. It was
all her scheme and was all arranged be-
fore they left Detroit. I tell you that
girl would make her fortune on change.
Besides they''-
At this point there was great applause
and saw Mrs. Fernfeld Hoskins bow to
her audience. The people crowded around
her and congratulated her on the dis
course. Ny two young ladies pushed up
to the front and heard Florrie say:
"Dear Mrs. Hoskins, what a treat you
gave us. 1t seems as if l never under
stood Browning until tonight"
Mrs. Fernfield Hoskins was touched by
this sincere tribute from one so young and
so beautiful, and she remarked to the
chairman that one of the features that
made the present age SO much superior to
the past, was the interest young and
fashionable people took in the great Of
literature. Sharp in Detroit Free
Press.